Friday, June 15, 2012

How to Get Your Boss to Love What You Do

It sometimes is one of the great mysteries of the universe that the most obnoxious jerk on the planet gets promoted at work while the nicest folks seem to get laid off or stuck in dead-end jobs.

But it’s really not that big of a secret if you consider that Mr. Jerkface has exactly what the boss is looking for: bottom-line focus.

While the nicest people at work may pitch in on projects or even bring cookies every Friday, the truth is that if they’re not making real bottom-line contributions, they’re not indispensible to the boss. Nice is good, of course. But it’s not what keeps companies in business or bosses in their corner offices.

If you want to get that next step up the career ladder or keep from being shuttled from one horrible project to another, then you’ve got to make sure that the boss can clearly see you’re contributing to the bottom line. Without that part of the equation, you’re going nowhere.

Here’s how to make sure that no matter what your job, you’re focused on what is critical to your employer – and to your career success. Remember to:

• Never submit a proposal before knowing what it will cost. How many people will need to be involved? How long will it take before there’s a return on investment? Bosses want to hear... (read more here)